Kimberly Alters

Bio

Kimberly Alters is the Current and Innovation editor at Mic, where she oversees the site's coverage of the most pressing issues of the day. That includes everything from political shenanigans on Capitol Hill to grassroots organizing around reproductive rights to the latest news on climate change. Before joining Mic, Kim focused on community storytelling at HuffPost and was the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. When she's not obsessively checking for typos, she's probably either watching basketball or cooking herself a deliciously spicy meal. You can follow Kim on Twitter at @kimalters.

The anguish and power of the George Floyd protests, in photos
By Kimberly Alters
Tuesday, May 25, marks the one-year anniversary of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of the Minneapolis police. Over the past 12 months, his death has served as a rallying cry for countless racial and social justice movements not only in the United…
Derek Chauvin has been convicted in the murder of George Floyd
By Kimberly Alters
On Tuesday afternoon, a Minneapolis jury convicted former city police officer Derek Chauvin of the murder of George Floyd. Chauvin was convicted on all three charges he faced — second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree…
Day 1 of Trump's second impeachment trial was a cold reminder of what Trump wrought
By Kimberly Alters
For a legitimately historic event, the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump has felt a little anticlimactic. That we got here at all was overshadowed by the condensed timeline: From Jan. 6, the day of the Capitol riot, to Jan. 13, the day the…
Jan. 20 will come. The "orderly transition" never will
By Kimberly Alters
In the last few months, there have been a few highly anticipated days on the calendar. Nov. 3, 2020: Election Day. Jan. 1, 2021: a new year, finally. Jan. 5, 2021: the Georgia runoffs. But it's quite likely that in the end, Jan. 6, 2021, is the day…
Kamala Harris will be the first woman and first POC elected to the vice presidency
By Kimberly Alters
On Saturday, along with the news that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was the winner of the 2020 presidential election, came another historic win: Kamala Harris, the California senator of Jamaican and Indian descent, will be the first…
Trump has not won, no matter what he says
By Kimberly Alters
It's amazing how a mantra can fail you. Generally, if you need to really, truly believe something, you're advised to repeat it to yourself over and over until you internalize it. And so, pundits and Democratic politicians spent days and weeks and…
Rev. Raphael Warnock wants to be the one to finally deliver a Democratic win in Georgia
By Kimberly Alters
Georgia has been the Democrats' white whale for years now. Once a solid-red state, Georgia is now a bona fide campaign destination for Democrats, and this cycle is hosting not one, but two competitive Senate races. In one, Rev. Raphael Warnock, the…
Trump's narcissism has never been more glaringly apparent
By Kimberly Alters
When someone tells you who they are, believe them. It's one of those mom-approved aphorisms that belies the wisdom beneath it. If someone makes clear over several decades in public life that they are image-obsessed, that they are capable of violence…
The Supreme Court just struck down a major threat to abortion access
By Kimberly Alters
The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that a Louisiana law demanding that abortion providers have admitting privileges to a nearby hospital is unconstitutional, effectively preserving abortion access in the state. Requiring admitting privileges slashes…
The Supreme Court rules that LGBTQ workers are protected from job discrimination
By Kimberly Alters
On Monday morning, the Supreme Court ruled that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does in fact protect LGBTQ individuals from workplace discrimination. The ruling, based on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, declares that discrimination on the basis of…
"A nightmare I cannot seem to escape": What it's like to have a parent in prison right now
By Kimberly Alters
Ebony Underwood doesn't have a lot of high-quality photos of her father. That's because when her dad was arrested, the government seized her family's photo albums. While for most people, Mother's Day evokes May brunches and Father's Day in June is a…
Trump claims "total" authority in his longest and angriest coronavirus briefing yet
By Kimberly Alters
President Trump on Monday fell into a trap that has beguiled us all at one point or another: He got frustrated and blurted out exactly what he thinks rather than couching those thoughts in a bit of civil rhetoric. The president's nightly coronavirus…
Trump retweeted a message calling for Dr. Anthony Fauci to be fired
By Kimberly Alters
The lofty goal for Twitter was to facilitate discussion. Allow people to rattle off even small thoughts, and ideally they'll be adding something short but profound to the ether. The low barrier to entry will mean no good thought goes unshared — and…
Trump's coronavirus press conference was a masterclass in passing the buck
By Kimberly Alters
On Friday afternoon, President Trump gave up the act. Standing in the White House Rose Garden with an array of government officials behind him, he declared a national emergency over the coronavirus pandemic that is increasing in severity throughout…
We're now in the "acquitted" phase of Trump's presidency
By Kimberly Alters
On Wednesday afternoon, shortly after 4 p.m. ET, President Trump entered a new phase of his presidency: the acquitted phase. Despite Utah Sen. Mitt Romney's decision earlier in the day to announce he'd break rank with his fellow Republicans and vote…
The difficulty of grieving for Kobe Bryant, my imperfect hero
By Kimberly Alters
There’s something about grief that makes you feel a little bit foolish. Foolish for believing a terrible thing would not happen, foolish for forgetting how random and unjust the course of life can be. Foolish for feeling so devastated at all. It’s…
Here's who Gen Z voters want to win in 2020
By Kimberly Alters
With the impeachment trial of President Trump officially underway, one way to remove the reality star president from office is already brewing. But while the 2020 election may seem right now like a glorified vanity project by too many high-profile…
Here's who will be tasked with prosecuting Democrats' case against Trump
By Kimberly Alters
President Trump's impeachment trial is about to begin, and we finally know who will be tasked with making the Democrats' case against the commander in chief. On Wednesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the seven congresspeople who will be the…
Goodbye to Cory Booker and his relentlessly positive 2020 campaign
By Kimberly Alters
In a characteristically upbeat video, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker on Monday announced that he is suspending his 2020 presidential campaign. Booker had maintained a message of positivity and unity throughout his run, launching his campaign last…
Castro backs Warren: "You're summoning the energy of the people"
By Kimberly Alters
Julián Castro, the former housing secretary and most recent retiree from the 2020 Democratic primary, has already thrown his progressive might behind a former presidential rival. Castro is endorsing Elizabeth Warren, he announced Monday with a video…